Method for producing wire harness

ABSTRACT

Disclosed is a method for producing a wire harness including a core inserting step of forming a widely open braided mesh portion by widening a braided mesh of a braid before crimping is performed, and of inserting a core into an end from the outside of the braid via the widely open braided mesh portion.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of international patent applicationNo. PCT/JP2013/075531, which was filed on Sep. 20, 2013 based onJapanese Patent Application No. 2012-211735 filed on Sep. 26, 2012, thecontents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a method for producing a wire harness.

2. Description of the Related Art

Typically, for example, a high-tension (that is, high-voltage) wireharness is used as a member that electrically connects a battery to aninverter unit in a hybrid vehicle or an electric vehicle. The wireharness for electrically connecting the battery to the inverter unitincludes a plurality of high-tension conductive paths; an exteriormember that has a tubular shape, accommodates and protects thehigh-tension conductive paths; and a braid that has a cylindrical shape,and covers the respective terminal portions of the conductive paths(hereinafter, referred to as conductive path terminal portions) whichare externally led from the end of the exterior member.

Typically, the braid is fixed to the end of the exterior member viacrimping. The braid is included as a member for shielding the conductivepath terminal portions from electromagnetic waves (that is, shieldingmember). A wire harness disclosed in JP-A-2004-171952 is an example ofthe wire harness that includes such a braid.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

When the conductive path terminal portions are led far from the end ofthe exterior member, the length of the braid covering the conductivepath terminal portions is also set to be long. An end of the braid isfixed to the end of the exterior member via crimping. The insertion of acore into the end of the exterior member is required for a crimpingoperation. However, when the braid is long, it is difficult to insertthe core from the other end of the braid. In particular, when the braidis long relative to an opening of the end of the exterior member indimension, the crimping operation becomes difficult. For this reason,workability may be adversely affected.

The present invention is made in light of the problem, and a non-limitedobject of the present invention is to provide a method for producing awire harness, by which it is possible to improve workability in theinsertion of a core.

In order to achieve the above object, a method for producing a wireharness according to aspect of the present invention is configured asthe following configurations (1) to (4).

-   -   (1) A method for producing a wire harness, wherein the wire        harness includes:

at least one conductive path;

an exterior member, having a tubular shape, that accommodates andprotects the conductive path; and

a braid, having a cylindrical shape, that is fixed to an end of theexterior member via crimping, and covers a terminal portion of theconductive path which is externally led from the end, wherein the methodfor producing the wire harness comprises:

a core inserting step of forming a widely open braided mesh portion bywidening a braided mesh of the braid before the crimping is performed,and inserting a core inside the end from an outside of the braid throughthe widely open braided mesh portion.

(2) The method for producing the wire harness according to theconfiguration (1), wherein, the braid is a long braid formed to have along total length relative to an opening of the end in dimension.

(3) The method for producing the wire harness according to theconfiguration (1) or (2), wherein, in the core insertion step, thewidely open braided mesh portion is formed by widening the braided meshclose to the end.

-   -   (4) The method for producing the wire harness according to any        one of the configurations (1) to (3), wherein, during the core        insertion step, an insertion side of the core, on which a        convexity is formed, is inserted to the widely open braided mesh        portion.

According the method for producing the wire harness in the configuration(1) above, since the widely open braided mesh portion is formed bywidening the braided mesh of the braid, and the core is inserted intothe end of the exterior member from the outside of the braid through thewidely open braided mesh portion, it is possible to improve workabilityin the insertion of the core compared to the related art.

According to the method for producing the wire harness in theconfiguration (2) above, even though the braid is long, it is possibleto improve workability in the insertion of the core.

According to the method for producing the wire harness in theconfiguration (3) above, since the widely open braided mesh portion isformed close to the end of the exterior member, it is possible todecrease an insertion distance of the core. For this reason, it ispossible to much more easily insert the core.

According to the method for producing the wire harness in theconfiguration (4) above, since the insertion side of the core, on whichthe convexity is formed, is inserted, it is possible to smoothly insertthe core through the widely open braided mesh portion. For this reason,it is possible to much more easily insert the core.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view illustrating routing of a wire harness.

FIG. 2 is a diagram of the configuration of the wire harness in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a plan view illustrating a state of an end portion of anexterior member before a braid is fixed.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating when a core is inserted via awidely open braided mesh portion.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a state in which crimping isperformed and the core is removed.

FIG. 6 is a plan view illustrating a state of the end portion of theexterior member after the braid is fixed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Roughly describing, in a method for producing a wire harness accordingto an embodiment, when fixing an end of a braid to the end of anexterior member via crimping, instead of inserting a core from the otherend of the braid, a widely open braided mesh portion is formed bywidening braided meshes of the braid, and the core is inserted into theend of the exterior member from the outside of the braid through thewidely open braided mesh portion.

Hereinafter, the wire harness and a production method therefor accordingto the embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6. FIG.1 is a schematic view illustrating routing of the wire harness accordingto the embodiment. FIG. 2 is a view of the configuration of the wireharness in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a plan view illustrating a state of an endportion of the exterior member before the braid is fixed. FIG. 4 is aperspective view illustrating when the core is inserted via the widelyopen braided mesh portion. FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating astate in which crimping is performed and the core is removed. FIG. 6 isa plan view illustrating a state of the end portion of the exteriormember after the braid is fixed.

In the embodiment, the present invention is applied, as an example, to awire harness that is routed in a hybrid vehicle (may be an electricvehicle or a typical vehicle).

In FIG. 1, reference number 1 indicates a hybrid vehicle. The hybridvehicle 1 is a vehicle that is driven by the combination of two powersources such as an engine 2 and a motor unit 3. A battery 5 (in otherwords, battery pack) supplies electrical power to the motor unit 3 viaan inverter unit 4. In the embodiment, the engine 2, the motor unit 3,and the inverter unit 4 are mounted in an engine compartment 6 close tofront wheels and the like. The battery 5 is mounted in a vehicle rearportion 7 close to rear wheels and the like. The battery 5 may bemounted in the interior of vehicle which is positioned at the back ofthe engine compartment 6.

The motor unit 3 and the inverter unit 4 are electrically connected toeach other via a high-tension wire harness 8. The battery 5 and theinverter unit 4 are also electrically connected to each other via ahigh-tension wire harness 9. A middle portion 10 of the wire harness 9is routed on a vehicle floor 11. The wire harness 9 is routed along thevehicle floor 11 and in substantially parallel therewith. The vehiclefloor 11 is a well-known body, and is formed of a so-called panelmember, and a thru-hole (not illustrated) is formed at a predeterminedposition of the vehicle floor 11. The wire harness 9 is inserted throughthe thru-hole.

The wire harness 9 and the battery 5 are electrically connected to eachother via a junction block 12 of the battery 5. A rear end 13 of thewire harness 9 is electrically connected to the junction block 12 usinga well-known method. A front end 14 of the wire harness 9 iselectrically connected to the inverter unit 4 using a well-known method.

The motor unit 3 includes a motor (not illustrated) and a generator (notillustrated). The inverter unit 4 has an inverter (not illustrated) anda converter (not illustrated). The motor unit 3 is formed as a motorassembly that includes a shielding case (not illustrated). The inverterunit 4 is also formed as an inverter assembly that includes a shieldingcase (not illustrated). The battery 5 is a Ni-MH battery or a Li-ionbattery, and is formed into a module. In addition, it is also possibleto use an electrical power storage device such as a capacitor. Thebattery 5 is not particularly limited to a specific form of batteryinsofar as the battery 5 can be used in the hybrid vehicle 1 or anelectric vehicle.

First, the configuration and structure of the wire harness 9 will bedescribed.

As described above, the wire harness 9 is a high-tension member forelectrically connecting the inverter unit 4 to the battery 5. Asillustrated in FIG. 2, the wire harness 9 includes conductive paths 15;an exterior member 16; a braid 17; an inverter-side connecting portion18; and a battery-side connecting portion 19.

The following is adopted as conductive path 15: a high-tension electricwire that includes a conductor and an insulator; a cabtyre cable; ahigh-tension coaxial composite conductive path that has a set ofpositive and negative circuits; or the like. In addition, a high-tensionconductive path can be also adopted as the conductive path 15, which isobtained by providing an insulator on a well-known bus bar. In theembodiment, a well-known high-tension electric wire is adopted as theconductive path 15 (refer to FIG. 2). In the embodiment, two conductivepaths 15 which are high-tension electric wires are used. The number ofconductive paths 15 in use is not limited to a specific number.

The conductor is made of copper, a copper alloy, aluminum, or analuminum alloy. The conductor may have a structure in which wires aretwisted together, or a structure having a bar shape which has arectangular cross section or a round cross section (for example, astructure in which the conductor has a straight angle single core or around single core, and in this case, the electric wire also has a barshape). A high-tension electric wire is produced by extrusion-molding aninsulator made of an insulating resin material on the outer surface ofthe conductor.

The exterior member 16 is a tubular metal body that accommodates andprotects the conductive paths 15, and in the embodiment, the exteriormember 16 is formed to have a circular cross section. In addition, thecircular cross section is an example, and the exterior member 16 in usemay be formed to have an elliptical cross section by pressing a circulartube. The exterior member 16 may have an oblong circular cross section,a rectangular cross section, or the like.

The exterior member 16 is formed to have a length according to therouting path of the wire harness 9. The exterior member 16 is formed tohave a thickness required to protect the conductive paths 15. Theexterior member 16 is formed to have a diameter required to allow theconductive paths 15 to be inserted therethrough and accommodatedtherein.

Since the exterior member 16 accommodates the conductive paths 15 whichare high-tension electric wires, a portion of the outer surface of theexterior member 16 is used to notify that the conductive paths 15 arefor high voltage electricity. In the embodiment, the outer surface ofthe exterior member 16 is painted orange so as to indicate that theconductive paths 15 are for high tension electricity.

As an example of the material of the exterior member 16, stainless steelis selected from the viewpoint of protective performance or weatherresistance. As an example of the material of the exterior member 16,aluminum or an aluminum alloy may be also selected from the viewpoint ofprotective performance or weight reduction. In the embodiment, theexterior member 16 made of aluminum is adopted.

Add-on components (not illustrated) are attached to the outer surface ofthe exterior member 16. The following are examples of the add-oncomponents: a clamp for attaching and fixing the wire harness 9 to thevehicle floor 11 (refer to FIG. 1); a grommet that is water tightlyattached to the thru-hole in the vehicle floor 11; and the like.

A conductive path terminal portion 21 of each of the conductive paths 15is pulled out of (led from) an end 20 of the exterior member 16 in apredetermined length. An end 22 of the braid 17 for shielding theconductive path terminal portions 21 from electromagnetic waves is fixedto the end 20. A terminal fitting 23 for electric connection is fixed toan end portion of the conductive path terminal portion 21, that is, theterminal of the conductive path 15.

As described above, the end 22 of the braid 17 is fixed to the end 20 ofthe exterior member 16. A crimp ring 24, which is thin and has anannular shape, is used for the fixing. The diameter of the crimp ring 24is reduced via crimping, thereby the braid 17 is brought into a crimpedstate, and fixed to the exterior member 16. When the crimp ring 24 issubjected to crimping, a concave deformed portion 25 is formed in thecrimp ring 24.

The braid 17 is formed to have a cylindrical shape by braiding bundles27 of extra-thin metal strands 26 having conductivity, and many braidedmeshes 28 are formed in the braid 17. When the braiding is performed,the number of wires per carrier or the number of carriers in thebraiding is arbitrarily determined. In the embodiment, the metal strands26 in use are made of aluminum or an aluminum alloy so as to reduceweight. Aluminum or an aluminum alloy is an example of the material, andthe metal strands 26 may include resin wires having conductivity.

The braid 17 is initially formed to have a long length, and is cut tohave a predetermined length for use after the manufacturing. The braid17 is formed to have a long total length relative to the dimension of anopening of the end 20 of the exterior member 16. That is, the braid 17is formed to be a long braid. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 3, thebraid has a long length, due to which the braid droops.

In the embodiment, the conductive path terminal portion 21 pulled outfrom the end 20 of the exterior member 16 is relatively long. For thisreason, the braid 17 is also formed to have a long length.

The conductive paths 15 are collectively inserted into the braid 17. Theother end 29 of the braid 17 is widely opened in conformity to the shapeof each of the inverter-side connecting portion 18 and the battery-sideconnecting portion 19.

Each of the inverter-side connecting portion 18 and the battery-sideconnecting portion 19 includes a shielding shell 31 that has acylindrical connecting portion 30; a crimp member 32 having a ringshape; the terminal fittings 23 which are respectively provided at theterminals of the conductive paths 15; and bolts (not illustrated) thatfix the shielding shell 31 to the shielding case (not illustrated).

The shielding shell 31 is a metal-like structural body havingconductivity, and has bolt fixing portions for allowing the bolts (notillustrated) to be inserted thereinto. The bolt fixing portions aredisposed in alignment with the position of the shielding case. Theshielding shell 31 is formed to have a shape by which the conductivepaths 15 are allowed to pass through the shielding shell 31.

The cylindrical connecting portion 30 is disposed in such a manner thatthe conductive paths 15 are aligned with a portion of the cylindricalconnecting portion 30, through which the conductive paths 15 pass. Thecylindrical connecting portion 30 is a part of the shielding shell 31,is made of metal, has an annular shape, and is inserted into the otherend 29 of the braid 17. The cylindrical connecting portion 30 includes aportion electrically connected to the other end 29 of the braid 17, anda portion that receives a crimping force when the crimp member 32 issubjected to crimping.

The crimp member 32 is a member that is inserted onto the outside of theother end 29 of the braid 17. The crimp member 32 is formed by machininga metal plate with a thickness suitable for the transformation of ashape into an annular shape. When the crimp member 32 is subjected tocrimping, a plurality of deformed portions 33 which are concave near thebraid 17 are formed in the crimp member 32. The deformed portion 33 maybe the same as the deformed portion 25.

Subsequently, an operation of fixing the end 22 of the braid 17 to theend 20 of the exterior member 16 will be described with reference toFIGS. 3 to 6. Hereinafter, distinctive parts of a method for producingthe wire harness 9 (refer to FIG. 2) will be described, and for example,a well-known method is adopted as the remainder of the method forproducing the wire harness 9. Hereinafter, a mode by which an operatorperforms operations will be described, but the embodiment of the presentinvention is not limited to that mode. For example, in another mode, apart or the entirety of the operations may be performed by a machine.

During a first operation, as illustrated in FIG. 3, the operator insertsthe end 20 of the exterior member 16 into the end 22 of the braid 17(that is, the outside of the end 20 is covered with the end 22). Duringthe following operation, the operator inserts the end 22 of the braid 17into the crimp ring 24, so that the crimp ring 24 is disposed on theoutside of the end 22. The end 22 of the braid 17 is disposed betweenthe end 20 of the exterior member 16 and the crimp ring 24 via the firstoperation.

During a second operation, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the operator formsa widely open braided mesh portion 34 in the braid 17. During thefollowing operation, the operator inserts a core 35 into the end 20 ofthe exterior member 16 from the outside of the braid 17 through thewidely open braided mesh portion 34 (In FIG. 4, arrow P indicates aninsertion direction). For example, the widely open braided mesh portion34 is formed by widening a braided mesh 28 in a direction of arrow Qillustrated in FIG. 4, and the braided mesh 28 is close to the end 20 ofthe exterior member 16.

When the widely open braided mesh portion 34 is formed via the secondoperation, the core 35 can be inserted via the widely open braided meshportion 34, and thereby the core 35 may not be inserted via the otherend 29 of the braid 17. For this reason, the insertion distance of thecore 35 decreases. Accordingly, workability in the insertion of the core35 improves.

A convex portion 36 is preferably formed on an insertion side of thecore 35. The hemispherical or cannonball-shaped convexity of the convexportion 36 is effective for inserting the core 35. Since the convexportion 36 is formed, the core 35 is smoothly inserted through thewidely open braided mesh portion 34.

During a third operation, as illustrated in FIG. 5, the operatorperforms a crimping operation for the crimp ring 24. After the crimpingoperation is completed, the operator removes the core 35 from the insideof the end 20 of the exterior member 16 to the outside of the braid 17via the widely open braided mesh portion 34 (In FIG. 5, arrow Rindicates a removing direction.)

When the crimp ring 24 is subjected to crimping via the third operation,a concave deformed portion 25 is formed in the crimp ring 24.Accordingly, the end 22 of the braid 17 is fixed to the end 20 of theexterior member 16.

Since an opening of the widely open braided mesh portion 34 is securedby the insertion of the core 35 during the second operation, it ispossible to smoothly remove the core 35 during the third operation.

During a fourth operation, as illustrated in FIG. 6, the operatorrestores the braid 17 into an original state, that is, restores thewidely open braided mesh portion 34 (refer to FIGS. 4 and 5) into anoriginal state of the braided mesh 28. Accordingly, a series of theoperations are completed, by which the end 22 of the braid 17 is fixedto the end 20 of the exterior member 16.

As can be understood from the description above, the method forproducing the wire harness according to the embodiment includes a coreinserting step (that is, the second operation) of forming the widelyopen braided mesh portion 34 by widening the braided mesh 28 of thebraid 17, and of inserting the core 35 into the end 20 of the exteriormember 16 from the outside of the braid 17 through the widely openbraided mesh portion 34. For this reason, it is possible to improveworkability in the insertion of the core 35 compared to the related art.In particular, it is possible to improve workability in the insertion ofthe core 35 in a case where the braid 17 is long.

In the description above, the present invention is applied to the wireharness 9, but is not limited to the wire harness 9. The presentinvention can be also applied to the wire harness 8.

Naturally, various modifications can be made to the present inventioninsofar as the modifications do not depart from the intent of thepresent invention.

The following is a summary of the wire harness according to theembodiment.

(1) A method for producing a wire harness according to the embodiment isa method for producing a wire harness 9, in which the wire harness 9includes at least one conductive path 15; an exterior member 16, havinga tubular shape, that accommodates and protects the conductive path 15;and a braid 17, having a cylindrical shape, that is fixed to an end 20of the exterior member 16 via crimping, and covers a terminal portion ofthe conductive path (a conductive path terminal portion 21) which isexternally led from the end 20. The method for producing the wireharness according to the embodiment includes a core inserting step offorming a widely open braided mesh portion 34 by widening a braided mesh28 of the braid 17 before the crimping is performed, and inserting acore 35 inside the end 20 from an outside of the braid 17 through thewidely open braided mesh portion 34.

(2) According to the method for producing the wire harness of theembodiment, the braid 17 is a long braid formed to have a long totallength relative to an opening of the end 20 in dimension.

(3) According to the method for producing the wire harness of theembodiment, in the core insertion step, the widely open braided meshportion 34 is formed by widening the braided mesh 28 close to the end20.

(4) According to the method for producing the wire harness of theembodiment, during the core insertion step, an insertion side of thecore 35, on which a convexity (convex portion 36) is formed, is insertedto the widely open braided mesh portion 34.

A method for producing a wire harness according to the present inventionis effective in that it is possible to improve workability in theinsertion of a core.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for producing a wire harness, whereinthe wire harness includes: at least one conductive path; an exteriormember, having a tubular shape, that accommodates and protects theconductive path; and a braid, having a cylindrical shape, that is fixedto an end of the exterior member via crimping, and covers a terminalportion of the conductive path which is externally led from the end,wherein the method for producing the wire harness comprises: a coreinserting step of forming a widely open braided mesh portion by wideninga braided mesh of the braid before the crimping is performed, andinserting a core inside the end from an outside of the braid through thewidely open braided mesh portion.
 2. The method for producing the wireharness according to claim 1, wherein, the braid is a long braid formedto have a long total length relative to an opening of the end indimension.
 3. The method for producing the wire harness according toclaim 1, wherein, in the core insertion step, the widely open braidedmesh portion is formed by widening the braided mesh close to the end. 4.The method for producing the wire harness according to claim 1, wherein,during the core insertion step, an insertion side of the core, on whicha convexity is formed, is inserted to the widely open braided meshportion.